Kuoma is a family-owned and operated shoe and clothing manufacturer founded in 1928 in Kuomiokoski by Juho Puttonen. Today, the company manufactures high-quality and durable shoes as well as clothing for children and adults to go outside. All Kuoma shoes are made in Finland at our Kuomiokoski factory. Kuoma products are sold in thirteen countries around Europe, Asia, and North America.

Kuoma’s values include responsibility, Finnish expertise, and craftsmanship. These values steer our everyday work from design to production.

Kuoma incorporates the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact on human rights, labour, the environment, and anti-corruption. We also focus on four of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. We recognize that businesses have a key role to play to advance sustainable development goals and that our business activities have economic, social, and environmental impacts. We focus on our activities that have the greatest impact.

We have made significant progress to reduce our CO2 emissions in our production in Finland. In 2020, no CO2 emissions were produced from the electricity used in our Kuomiokoski factory. Our factory was powered with renewable, nuclear, as well as solar energy.

A key aspect of our Kuoma shoes is their durability. Our shoes are made to last. They are durable, easy to clean, and can last for many seasons and even be passed on to younger siblings or other kids over time which reduces consumption.

We are working to reduce the negative impact of the materials we use in the manufacturing of our products. Our shoe production facilities are located in Finland and our manufacturing materials mostly come from Finland and other EU countries. We use recyclable and recycled materials in our products and our packaging.

We are also committed to ensuring a safe and healthy environment for our employees.

We will continue our journey to advance sustainable development goals. We will work to define and reach clear targets on sustainability.

Responsible Production in Finland

Responsibility is reflected in our production through everyday choices related to energy use, energy efficiency, and the efficient use of materials. We continuously develop our operations with the goal of creating more energy-efficient production with a lower environmental impact. As part of this development, we are transitioning to a new, energy-efficient production facility.

• Our production uses 100% fossil-free electricity.

• Our production facilities utilize solar energy, geothermal heating, air-to-water heat pumps, and district heating generated from wood chips.

• Some heating systems also use supplementary energy solutions, such as fuel oil, to support operational reliability.

• Heat recovery systems generate a significant part
of the heating at our Kuomiokoski factory.

• We aim to minimize the amount of waste generated in production and improve the efficient use of materials continuously. All waste that is produced at our factory is burned for energy.

• We believe in producing durable and high-quality products.

• All our footwear is manufactured in Finland using materials sourced mainly from Finland and Europe, and partly from carefully selected responsible partners in Asia.

• We use recycled materials in selected upper and lining materials in models such as Lumitarina, Lumitarina Huopa, Nuoska and Lumisatu. Many of our winter footwear models also feature insoles made from 70% recycled PET material.

• The lining material as well as the sewing thread used in our shoes have OEKO-TEX® Standard 100
certification.

• We use Norilia Swan Eco Label Wool from Norway as well as OEKO-TEX® certified wool felt.

• The leather, as well as sewing threads materials we use, do not contain any SVHC substances included in the REACH Candidate List.

• The leather used in our products is a byproduct of the meat industry.

• We use 70% recycled PET material.

• We ask our suppliers to commit to minimizing the impact of their activities on the environment and to comply with environmental legislation.

• Our clothing is made with quality materials to last long and is protected with BIONIC-FINISH® ECO (fluorine-free durable water repellency).

• Our boots are shipped in boxes made of 80 % recyclable cardboard.

• We value our employees, treat them fairly and promote non-discrimination under the Finnish
Non-Discrimination Act.

• We provide a healthy and safe work environment.

• In collaboration with our employees, occupational safety and health risks are continuously assessed to ensure compliance with guidelines and regulations.

• Our employees can join a labour union.

• We ask our suppliers to respect labour and human rights as well as provide a safe work environment and working conditions.

• Our clothing suppliers abroad meet BSCI requirements and we conduct audits to ensure a safe and healthy work environment is provided.